Sabrina's Punishment
by Elsakun
Summary: It's the day of the Ball of Saint Lyon, and Sabrina's guilt of impersonating the princess is driving her insane. However, Klaus discovering that she was guilty of this crime doesn't help her at all.


I sighed as I held Klaus's hand tightly. Although I didn't realize I was squeezing it, he could tell, and he wrapped his other hand around mine comfortingly. "We'll be fine," he whispered reassuringly. "We've practiced every day, for hours on end. If we don't win, at least we'll have fun. And it won't be like the end of the world; we'll still get to talk to each other."

No, we won't. I didn't want him to know that, so I just nodded. Both my tongue and hands were tied. There was nothing I could do here but dance with him, and then leave him. Nothing. If I'd known I would fall in love, then I never would have agreed to the real princess's plot. This whole thing is going to wind up with more than just me crying!

"And now, please welcome the stars of the Ball!" Oh, God, please don't tell me he's talking about us... We're not stars... "Princess Sabrina and Prince Klaus!" He _is._ Oh, no! We're not that good—just because everybody's rooting for us doesn't mean we're amazing or especially talented or anything! We're going to fail, we're going to crush their hopes!

"Let's go," Klaus nodded to me with a soft smile. Klaus... why? Why can't you just leave me? Leave me like the liar I am? But somehow I found the strength to take his hand, and he led me forward onto the stage. Something make this stop. I can't take this anymore—I can't let him think I'm the princess! But I can't let him know, either. Someone do something, interrupt this, shout your objections!

"Wait! Your highness!" I froze. That's... the guardsman. There was a girl's voice—mine?—that was protesting.

"Let me go, you!" she whined.

"I found this very suspicious person trying to enter the castle!" the guard informed, ruffly yanking on her cloak. She shrieked, obviously not used to being treated this way.

"...No..." I whispered and tried to back into the crowd.

Oh, but then Klaus wrapped his arm around my shoulders. "If she's here for you, I'll protect you, Sabrina." He said, smiling at me warmly. "I promise. You won't get hurt."

No. No, no, no! Stop it, Klaus! Don't touch me—I can't face you after this! After you were such good friends with the princess...

"Very suspicious indeed!" The King roared. "Unmask this villain!"

"Show yourself, evildoer!" The guard cried, overly dramatic, as if this were some sort of ritual. He gripped the cloak tightly. "Let your identity be known!"

The cloak flew into the crowd, a shocked silence taking hold of everyone. "W...what is the meaning of this?!" The King demanded. "Two Sabrinas?!"

Oh, I can't face Klaus now. I can't. But his arm tightened and I couldn't run. I had no choice but to stare disaster in the face, as afraid as I was. "An impostor?" he growled. "Your highness, I suggest you imprison her immediately!"

"Wait," King Crown paused. No. Oh, god, don't let her explain! "If I recall, Isabel did say something about the Sabrina in the contest being a fake. Sabrina, explain yourself!"

I felt a bead of sweat roll down the side of my face. Sabrina looks at me, and I look at her. Then she says, "Hey, aren't you going to explain?"

I blinked. "What, me? Isn't he talking to you?"

"So, their names are the same as well?!" The King raged. "The one with the cloak, then! You explain this instant what's going on!"

"I... I'm sorry, Daddy!" she wailed. My face paled and I tried to turn, but Klaus's grip was firm. No. Klaus, please... "This all happened because I didn't want to dance—you know how much I hate it! So I went into another world and dragged the other Sabrina here in my place, so that I wouldn't have to! I was so selfish and didn't think about her feelings... "

I could feel Klaus's eyes on me. I wanted to run. Anything. I don't want to see his look, please. God help me. "...Sabrina, I am disappointed in you!" Sabrina's father growled. "Guards! Throw this fake one into the dungeons! As for you, my daughter, you are in a huge amount of trouble!"

Klaus released me, turned his back on me. I felt the guards grab me aggressively. "Ah...!" There was no use in resisting. I deserved this for causing Klaus this pain...

"No, Daddy, wait!" Sabrina interjected. "It's my fault, I'm the one who forced her to do all this! So if anyone should be punished, it would be me! So let her go back to her own world like she wants and I'll own up to my terrible misdeed!"

Sabrina, stop. Tears were springing to my eyes, but I felt the guards cease at the King's hesitation. "...Very well," he decided. "As a reward for your kindness, Sabrina. You've grown since I last saw you."

"D-Daddy..." She was crying, too.

"Thank you so much, your highness," I curtsied before his mighty grace the moment the guards released me. "I don't deserve the mercy you've given me."

"Don't thank me yet," he warned. I blinked at him—why? "Your partner has been lied to and tricked into believing you're the real princess. He may not wish to dance with you."

I knew that very well. So I turned to him, feeling rather pained. "Klaus..."

"Don't. Please." His words stabbed at my heart, but I knew what was coming. He'd tell me he hated me. "You lied to me... for a whole month. I can't believe you. Somehow you knew what had happened between the real Sabrina and I... you tricked me. What kind of a witch are you, to be able to do that so smoothly?"

There went my heart, trying to push through my eyelids and down my face, just to shatter onto the ground, but I firmly refused to cry. I couldn't let myself do this. No, I couldn't. It was... unthinkable... "I understand," I replied in a wavering voice. "I'll go back right away. P-Princess, will you take his place as a dancing partner—"

"Are you crazy?!" Sabrina scoffed, stomping up to me. "You two have worked so hard! I know you have! So come on, Sabrina—get your happy ending!"

There wasn't one. Not in this country, this world. And after experiencing this, there would never be one in mine. "No. I..."

Klaus sighed and turned back around to me. His eyes glistened with a sparkling, threatening depression. "One more dance is what I'll grant you. But don't interact with my other self in your world, please. It'll only cause him pain, too."

I nodded. "O-one more dance... I'll take it, thank you so much."

"But..." Then he looked at the real princess. "Sabrina? Do you remember me?"

She blinked at him, then shook her head. "Sorry, I've never met you before in my life. Are you confusing me for someone else?"

Before he could reply, I grabbed his wrist—too strung-up to think he'd allow me to take his hand. "I-I'll take it now," I whispered. "Now, please. I'll leave afterwards. I'll get out of your life forever."

He gave me a pitying look, and we began to dance. I saw a tear slide out of his eye, and made a silent vow to myself.

Never again.


End file.
